For those British expats in Switzerland that haven’t been able to make the transition from Weetabix to Bircher muesli, buying your favourite brand of cereal across the boarder just got even cheaper after the Swiss National Bank scrapped the CHF-EUR exchange rate cap. Some price differences just leave you scratching your head. This is one […]
Swiss National Bank scraps exchange rate cap
In a surprise move the Swiss National Bank shocked the world today when it announced that it would stop managing the Swiss franc to an exchange rate of CHF 1.20 to 1.00 Euro. At the same time, it announced that it is lowering the interest rate on sight deposit account balances by 0.5 percentage points, to […]
Tax and the Swiss National Bank in 2014
To the joy of taxpayers, every year the Swiss National Bank (SNB) pays dividends to the cantons as well as the Confederation. At least this is what happened for every year from 1907 until 2012. In 2013 the SNB made a loss of CHF 9 billion and was in no position to pay. Payments were […]
Former Swiss president Didier Burkhalter wins a second vote
Last weekend the former Swiss president was elected Swiss of the year in an RTS Two Swiss television broadcast on Saturday. According to RTS he received 46% of the public votes made by the public by telephone and SMS. Last year’s winner was the Swiss tennis star Stan Wawrinka.
PEGIDA expands to Switzerland in the wake of Charlie Hebdo attack
The German PEGIDA (Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the Occident) movement is using the outrage following the Charlie Hebdo attacks to further its cause. It was founded in October 2014 in Dresden, Germany and its Facebook page now has over 140,000 likes. It is difficult to ascertain the group’s objectives. The German news service […]
The latest edition of Charlie Hebdo hits the streets
Today, one week after the appalling attack on Charlie Hebdo’s office in Paris the weekly satirical magazine published its regular weekly edition. According to the Swiss newspaper the NZZ it will be translated into 16 languages (including Arabic) and be available in Switzerland in German on Friday. The French version is expected to arrive tonight […]
Nous sommes Charlie
Editorial comment The New Year started quietly. Then barbarity struck the Charlie Hebdo office in Paris. While the slaughter was concentrated in Paris the resonance was global. The world rapidly came together in condemnation of this cowardly and atrocious act. Le News joins the world in condemning this barbarous act and offers its condolences to […]
Payot’s best sellers of the week
Voted “Book of the Year” by UK bookseller, Waterstones, The Miniaturist, published by Picador, is the highly acclaimed debut novel by Jessie Burton. Set in 1686 in Amsterdam, the book tells the story of 18-year-old Nella Oortman who arrives at the grand house of her new husband, the wealthy merchant Johannes Brandt. The marriage is […]
Madonna visits Switzerland
The American musician Madonna graces the slopes of Gstaad, the 3000 metre glacier in the canton of Vaud and shares her photos via twitter. Lacklustre snow conditions don’t seem to have dampened her enthusiasm. Switzerland inspires even those who have it all it seems.
The negative effect of negative Swiss interest rates
On 18 December 2014 the Swiss National Bank (SNB) introduced negative interest rates of -0.25% on sight deposit account balances over a certain amount – sight deposit accounts are those where funds can be withdrawn immediately without restriction. It also shifted its target range for 3 month LIBOR to a range of -0.25 to -0.75%. The […]
